The school, known as "GALA" for short, is the first dual language immersion school in Northeast Ohio. The first day of school is Aug. 3.

School administrators held an open house for students and parents today. Students will not only learn the core subjects, but also Spanish or Mandarin, an offer that is very attractive to parents.

GALA will be a tuition-free, public K-8 charter school, opening Aug. 3, 2016 and offer immersion in Mandarin and Spanish. GALA will enroll 184 students in kindergarten and first grade; adding a grade each year. Each grade level will allow for 92 students, divided among the Mandarin and Spanish cohorts; 23 students per class.

According to a news release, GALA’s innovative education model aligns with The Cleveland Plan and has support from the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and Transformation Alliance.

GALA will be the only foreign language immersion school in Northeast Ohio and first Mandarin immersion school in Ohio.

According to a news release, GALA is bringing an education model to the region that has exploded nationally. Similar schools across the nation typically receive over 600 applications for 40 seats. Language immersion education was introduced in the U.S. in 1971 and has rapidly grown.

In 2011, there were 448 language immersion schools across 38 states; six in Ohio for French and Spanish (Mansfield, Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati).